President backs N$50 000 fast-build homes for informal settlements
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has thrown her support behind a N$50 000 fast-build housing model demonstrated in Windhoek’s informal settlement, Okahandja Park, saying the initiative could play a key role in addressing Namibia’s growing housing backlog.
The president made the remarks last Friday during a visit to the settlement where she inspected a two-bedroom house constructed in just two days using alternative building technology.
The house was built by ABT Panels Namibia in partnership with the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia and costs about N$50 000 to complete.
Speaking during the visit, Nandi-Ndaitwah said the project reflects the kind of innovation government hopes to see from young entrepreneurs responding to the country’s housing crisis.
She said the initiative aligns with priorities outlined in the Swapo election manifesto and the country’s National Development Plan 6, which both identify housing and sanitation as key national priorities.
“These young people are responding to the call of the government,” the president said.
She emphasised that the project should receive priority support and suggested the initiative should not be subjected to the usual government tendering processes.
“This thing of tendering does not fit here,” she said.
“These people have directly responded to my call and they have focused on the real thing. Let us make them a priority and give them space to continue with this technology.”
The president said government is determined to accelerate housing delivery, particularly in informal settlements where many Namibians still live in shacks.
She also indicated that government intends to prioritise young entrepreneurs who develop practical solutions to national challenges.
“As a leader, you inspire people and then the people can do the work,” she said.
Urban and Rural Development minister James Sankwasa said the demonstration house convinced him that alternative building technologies could help transform the country’s housing sector.
He explained that the company first approached the ministry last year with proposals for rapid construction methods capable of building homes within three to four days.
“I told them I do not want to see a computer model. Go and build a house in Katutura and invite me when it is done,” Sankwasa said.
After visiting the completed structure, he said he became convinced the approach could significantly accelerate housing delivery.
“If you can do this in three or four days, how many houses can we build in a month, in a year, in five years?” he asked.
Sankwasa said the ministry is exploring ways to expand the use of such technologies as part of a broader effort to address Namibia’s housing shortage.
He also revealed plans to establish a local manufacturing facility for the building materials used in the project.
Currently, the panels are imported from South Africa, but local production could reduce the cost of a two-bedroom house to about N$40 000.
“I am already in discussions to make land available for a factory so that the material can be produced in Namibia,” he said.
Sankwasa added that government is also reviewing policies around serviced land, noting that developers who obtain land cheaply from local authorities often resell it at significantly higher prices.
Under the ministry’s proposed approach, government-serviced land will no longer be allocated to private developers, who will instead be required to develop their own land.
ABT Panels Namibia representative Enzo Amuele said the construction system uses concrete panels combined with insulated foam to create durable and weather-resistant structures.
The technology allows houses to be built in days rather than weeks or months while maintaining structural strength comparable to conventional brick construction.
Furthermore, he said that the panels are designed to withstand Namibia’s varying weather conditions and also offer insulation benefits.
“When it is hot outside, it is cooler inside, and when it is cold outside, it is warmer inside,” he explained.
Amuele said the same materials are already being used in other projects, including the construction of classrooms in Okongo.
